Nolan Arenado of the Colorado Rockies celebrates his solo homerun against the Arizona Diamondbacks with Jordan Pacheco of the Colorado Rockies in the sixth inning at Coors Field on April 5, 2014 in Denver, Colorado. (Doug Pensinger, Getty Images)

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The Rockies continued to trim their roster Thursday, sending five players down to the minors as they near their 25-man opening-day roster.

The players optioned were catcher Mike McKenry and infielders Josh Rutledge and Ryan Wheeler. Outfielders Jason Pridie and Tim Wheeler, both non-roster invitees, were re-assigned to the minors.

A major-league source also said that utility infielder Paul Janish has been told he has not made the team.

What became clear after Thursday’s moves is that Jordan Pacheco is the backup catcher for Wilin Rosario, and Charlie Culberson will be the primary utility infielder. Pacheco could also be called on to play spot infield duty.

The primary reason for Rutledge’s demotion is that the club wants to make sure he gets plenty of playing time and at-bats. Manager Walt Weiss loves Rutledge’s athleticism, but wants to make sure Rutledge works out some kinks in his swing.

SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. — Troy Tulowitzki swings with mean intentions. In a leg where many players try to generate power with dead hands, he drops his, cocks his arms and swings with ferocity. That swing was on display Friday as the all-star shortstop smashed two home runs off the Angels’ Joe Blanton in the Rockies’ 7-2 victory at Salt River Fields.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Looking to create more pitching depth and give a player a clearer path to the big leagues, the Rockies traded Triple-A catcher Mike McKenry to the Red Sox tonight for Double-A pitcher Daniel Turpen.

McKenry was slated to begin the season in Colorado Springs. But there was only one plate there, as manager Jim Tracy put it, and three guys likely needing time: Jordan Pacheco, Matt Pagnozzi, and sometime soon, Wilin Rosario.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Cuts are chipping away at the competition, narrowing the field for the fifth starter, backup catching and utility spots.

Fifth Colorado Rockies starter candidate Clayton Mortensen was optioned to the Triple-A along with catcher Mike McKenry and infielder Chris Nelson. This was a foregone conclusion for Mortensen after the club began working with him on a new delivery. It’s likely that he will contribute at some point this season, but won’t be early on.

McKenry is a homegrown product who had an outside shot at the backup role. But he got off to a slow start offensively, hitting .200 in 10 at-bats. He will head back to Triple-A Colorado Springs. Nelson was a curious case. All winter the Rockies made a point to mention him as a threat to win the second base job. But in camp, he didn’t get much shot there. He played on 16 innings at second base, spending most of his time at third (31 innings).

The owner said it. The general manager confirmed it. The Rockies are entering spring with Chris Ianentta as their starter. That was the tentative plan in November, and crystallized this month after Yorvit Torrealba rebuffed a two-year, $5.5-million deal in favor of a better off from Texas and Bengie Molina never materialized as an option.

So rather than add a veteran, the Rockies acquired a third unproven catcher today to throw in the mix to backup Iannetta, landing Jose Morales from the Twins today. A switch-hitter, Morales batted .194 last season in 36 at-bats in three different call-ups.

Morales will compete with Matt Pagnozzi, a free agent sign from the Cardinals, and rookie Mike McKenry for the backup spot. The Rockies have been reluctant to spend much on another catcher — save for Torrealba — because they believe that Jordan Pacheco and Wil Rosario are on the fast track to the big leagues.

The Rockies sent 22-year-old Paul Bargas to the Twins. He went 5-4, 3.59 (67.2 ip, 27 earned runs) with five saves in 58 games for Single-A Asheville last season.

Patrick, a third-generation Colorado native, is back for his second stint covering the Rockies. He first covered the team from 2005-2009, helping chronicle “Rocktober” in 2007 and also following the team’s playoff run in 2009.

Nick Groke has worked at The Denver Post since 1997, as a sports reporter, city reporter, entertainment writer and digital editor and producer, among other newsroom posts. He also writes regularly about boxing, soccer, MMA and NASCAR.